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Rising from the Ground/Twenty One
TWENTY ONE Like a skyscraper GWYN We march for the Raider border. My heart beats rapidly and I glance at Stormshadow, resolution hard in my eyes. “I’ll see you after the battle,” I whisper, trying to sound certain. Stormshadow nods too, his eyes glued to mine. “I love you,” he murmurs. “I love you too.” I touch my nose to his before breaking away and heading for my station and squad. I pass by Sootflight, who is digging his claws into the dirt. I pause and press my pelt briefly against the tom’s before heading away. I know he’ll be fine during the battle. He knows to take care of himself, because Shadowkit needs him. Mintsplash is staring straight ahead, her soft green eyes cold and hard. Ravenflight is tending to her soldiers, her yellow eyes glinting in the darkness. Finally I reach the edge of the troops - my troops. “When they give the signal,” I say lowly, “we rush in.” The twenty of them give me a nod. I stay at the front and wait. After what seems like an eternity, Blackthorn starts the battle call, his troops rushing in. I watch as Stormshadow follows and one by one, the fly warriors take their troops in. I’m at the edge and when Ravenflight disappears into the den, I take up the battle call and bring my troops in. The chaos is astounding. Cats are grappling everywhere and already, blood has been shed. I flick my tail and without another word, my troops dive into the battle. I hold back, my eyes scanning the area for one familiar, pure white pelt. Time for revenge. STORMSHADOW Gwyn disappears into the midst before I can say anything else. I watch her as she gets to her position. Blackthorn’s yowl jerks me out of my stupor and I watch, almost dumbfounded until my troops propel me forward, eager to get into the fight. With a yowl, I launch the second attack, adrenaline racing through me. I will see Gwyn after this. I lose sight of my troops the moment we enter the camp. Raiders surge at us from all sides and we disperse to meet them. A tom tackles me to the ground and I hiss as I try to kick him off. The Raiders’ speed still frightens me, despite Gwyn’s rigorous training that had enhanced my speed to match the Raiders. I’m still slower though, because the Raiders have trained so many moons to master their speed and even Gwyn isn’t as fast. Finally, I feel the tom’s weight being lifted off me and before I can thank the troop, the tom knocks him off his paws and I find myself facing a Raider she-cat instead. In a blink of an eye, she’s on top of me, and I go down once more, yowling. This was certainly going to be a long fight. RAVENFLIGHT I climb a tree and gaze over the camp. Stormshadow is struggling with several Raiders and I consider helping him. But someone has already helped him up and I’m glad to see the dark gray tom isn’t too battered up. Gwyn won’t be happy if Stormshadow gets himself killed in this battle. A flash of white catches my attention. Enero. I shudder slightly and I notice Gwyn lurking in the shadows, trying to get close. “Ravenflight!” Sootflight pants from below, “What’s the status of the camp?” “It’s an even tie,” I say and I leap down, knocking a Raider back. “Seems that until Gwyn gets Enero, we’ll never win.” I slash my claws through the Raiders throat and lunge into the battle without another word. No use teaming up when everyone is helping one another. The entire IceClan moves like one. I can only hope Gwyn can get to Enero soon. SOOTFLIGHT The yowls are deafening. As I rush into the battle, my adrenaline pumping, all I could think about was Ashshadow and how I had to avenge her. I lunge for the nearest cat, my claws tearing through the delicate skin. She shrieks and tries to throw me off but I dig in my claws harder, my anger pulsing through me. I push myself into the frenzy, my claws whirling. Fury blinds me and I find myself panting from my anger. “Sootflight!” Mintsplash reaches me side, “Are you alright?” My vision blurs. Ravenflight’s face comes into view but she’s gone just as fast as a Raider attacks us. I waver and in the next moment I find myself on the ground. “Sootflight!” A desperate she-cat’s voice fills my ears and I lift my head slightly to see Gwyn staring down at me in despair. I don’t know what’s happening. Everything washes away to white and everyone’s cries begin to fade away. Someone is nudging me and when I open my eyes, I see Ashshadow in front of me. “Ashshadow,” I whisper, standing and rushing over to her, “how is this possible? I’m in the middle of a battle.” “No,” she shakes her head sadly, “you’re not.” Realization dawns me. I turn slightly and see the image of me lying in the clearing, a puddle of blood circling me. Gwyn is crouched over my body while Mintsplash and Whiteflame defend against the Raiders. Ravenflight has already disappeared into the crowd. “I’m dead,” I say, almost stupidly. Ashshadow doesn’t say anything. “What about Shadowkit?” My voice cracks, “Our daughter needs us.” My mate purrs sadly. “Our friends will take care of her.” GWYN After Sootflight dies, I feel even more motivated to find Enero and end this match once and for all. I may not have known the young brown tom well, but his daughter… I push my way through the crowd, avoiding the slashing claws and howls of pain and anger as I shove them aside. I finally find Enero standing over a poor she-cat. “Pick on someone your own size,” I call out, catching his attention. The white tom turns deliberately towards me. “Ah, Gwyn. I was wondering where you were. When you didn’t return for half a moon, I knew something was up. Especially when Stormshadow escaped.” “This all ends now.” Enero laughs, “As if you can stop me. You’ve never been able to. I knew Artic could, but he’s dead.” I glare coldly at him. “You’ve taken too much from me.” Without another warning, I lunge, using my hindlegs to burst into my maximum speed, in which Enero himself had taught me to do. He’s too shocked to move and my claws sink into his throat. He topples backwards and I hiss. “I hate you. I won’t let you hurt anyone anymore.” The huge white just glares back and I turn around before stalking away. The cries of dismay echo throughout the clearing from the Raiders and before long, all of them have surrendered. Tears blur my vision and I feel a strong tail wrap around me. “I’m so proud of you.” I look up, wanting to see Stormshadow but to my surprise, I see Artic smiling warmly down at me. Like a skyscraper (Like a skyscraper)